Ex-Cult w/ Saint Gnome and Octogenarians; $6

On the tail of their excellent breakout 2nd LP “Midnight Passenger” on Goner Records, we have a brand new batch of bruisers from Ex-Cult, the Memphis-based punk cyclone that no doubt has laid waste to a town near you recently. Chris Shaw lends a sneering, spitting toughness to the proceedings while the band flays riffs in loose, hairy mosh inducing menace behind him, touching on post-punk, psych sprawl, and early 80s hardcore while remaining beholden to none. They have the power to convert even the most jaded and bored concertgoer into a sweaty mess in the pit, I’ve seen it first hand… punks, scene rats, skaters, skinheads, hardcore kids, druggies – so many disparate groups dig this band it’s like an MRR cartoon waiting to happen. This too-short collection of adrenal-enhancers are road warriors already – the title track’s chants of “trou-ble-finds-me” immediately transports me back to their packed and stanky show at The Smell every time I put the record on – the only problem with this sterling batch of sluggers is that it’s over too quick. – Matt Jones, Castle Face Records